Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo’s dubious claims to fame

Kichloo first hit headlines in April this year when as minister he slapped the chief executive officer of Kishtwar Development Authority (KDA), Riaz Ahmed Choudhary.

TNN | Aug 13, 2013, 06.10 AM IST

SRINAGAR: Jammu & Kashmir minister of state for home Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, 43, who resigned on Monday over communal clashes in his native Kishtwar town, comes from a leading political family from the state's Jammu region. The 43-year-old is believed to be close to chief minister Omar Abdullah, who is also the home minister.

After the death of his father Bashir Ahmad Kichloo, who was NC general secretary and a minister in then CM Farooq Abdullah's cabinet, Kichloo fought the assembly election from 51st segment of Kishtwar in 2002, which he won by 16,725 votes, defeating Congress's Ghulam Haider Sheikh by 1,663 votes. He won the 2008 assembly elections by 2,465 votes and was one of the 10 new faces inducted in the Omar ministry in January this year.

Kichloo first hit headlines in April this year when as minister he slapped the chief executive officer of Kishtwar Development Authority (KDA), Riaz Ahmed Choudhary. The incident took place hours before chief minister Omar Abdullah's scheduled visit to Kishtwar to inaugurate Jammu University's Kishtwar campus. Kichloo was apparently displeased over the official's late arrival.

The official also accused Kichloo's guards of beating him up and tearing his clothes after he resisted his attempt to slap him for the third time. He was assaulted in presence of top police officers, Choudhary alleged.

The police were forced to register a criminal case against Kichloo two months later after a court order. The court had pulled up the police for refusing to record the official's statement and registering an FIR besides giving Kichloo a clean chit.

Omar had described the incident as "unbecoming" after Kashmir Administrative Service officers protested against the assault. He had promised them that Kichloo would apologise to the official. Choudhary filed a criminal complaint after Omar's ministerial colleague failed to keep his promise.

The MLA handled delicate situations in the aftermath of the killing of four civilians in BSF firing in Gool last month and Afzal Guru's hanging in February this year.

Reacting to the accusations that he was camping in Kishtwar for few days before the violence, Kichloo said his paternal uncle Ghulam Abbas Kichloo, who was ill for some time, had passed away on August 4. "We were in mourning and planning to observe a sombre Eid," he said, castigating those hell bent on "maligning" his clean image. He said he will not only resign as MLA but also quit politics if allegations against him are proved.

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